WordCamp Rochester, NY, USA

While exploring Rochester, I’ve been occasionally confused with a beaver – of all things! Now I have nothing against beavers, but I’m a Wapuu!

But one place that this has never happened is when I’ve visited one of Rochester’s best kept secrets, ArtisanWorks – a truly one of a kind art gallery.

The place is amazing and packed with 40,000 sq feet of all kinds of art from a full size, detailed, wood sculpture of a Harley Davidson motorcycle by Ross Rider to paintings, taxidermy, stained glass, sculptures, antique cars, etc. They have some very special rooms such as the Frank Lloyd Wright Room and another space that has a kitchen, Japanese dining and a pool table and that isn’t even the half of it.

It’s the kind of place where I’m constantly punching my companion in the arm, saying “Look at this!” It can change your mind about what an art gallery is all about. Here’s an article that does a much better job of describing ArtisanWorks than I can. It is a one-of-a-kind place and is not to be missed!

What is your favorite food? Mine is cookies, of course! And not the kind of cookies that pop-up on websites either. My favorite cookies are Wegmans chocolate chip cookies. If you aren’t familiar with Wegmans, it is definitely worth a visit. They have all kinds of cookies!

Rochester is home to Wegmans. It had its beginning in 1916 when John and Walter Wegman, brothers, began to sell fresh produce via push carts on local streets. In 1930 they opened their first 20,000 square foot grocery store and today they have 98 stores. They pride themselves on quality, choice, prepared foods and superb customer service.

I’ve become a rather well known foodie in my circles and I love to shop at Wegmans. I even take visitors there – it is that special. So if you are in the mood for a little take-out, some coffee, your favorite cookie or a treat during your visit be sure to stop by, you might even see me there.

When I am not gallivanting around to WordCamps I’m exploring my hometown, Rochester NY. At first, I was confused by Rochester’s nickname. Is it “Flour City” or “Flower City”? Once it was explained to me, it made perfect sense! Rochester used to be known as the Flour City because of all the flour mills that dotted the Genesee River. The Genesee River and Erie Canal helped to power the flour mills along with providing fertile soil and transportation by waterways in addition to the railway. As flour processing moved to the Midwest, the largest seed companies in the world, started by immigrants, were based in Rochester and were the reason for the nickname change to “Flower City”. Read more on the history of Rochester at https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/History_of_Rochester,_New_York#Rochesterville_and_The_Flour_City

I’ve had the chance to visit the Susan B. Anthony Museum & House https://susanb.org/ where I learned that the 19th amendment to the U.S. Constitution, which granted women the right to vote, was named in her honor. I also learned that Frederick Douglass https://rocdouglass.com/ lived in Rochester for many years and published his first abolitionist newspaper here.

I hope while your here to attend WordCamp Rochester 2019 you’ll have a chance to visit Rochester and Monroe County. There’s a lot to do here.

I’ve been asked what my favorite food is. I’m surprised more of you haven’t guessed! I’ll let you know the answer next week.

I am a huge fan of George Eastman, a famous Rochester philanthropist and founder of Eastman Kodak, who generously supported the Rochester community. I love that the WordPress community is so open and welcoming to all, with people willing to give their time and expertise to anyone who needs it. If it wasn’t for George and his Eastman Kodak company, founded in Rochester, where might we be today with photography?

I am George Eastman’s number one fan. I’ve even been accused of dressing like him. And it is true I do try to dress like him! He was so stylish! The only problem I have with the way Eastman dressed is trying to find pants – they often don’t have a hole for my tail!

My favorite camera is the folding Brownie camera first introduced in 1900 by Eastman Kodak – I carry it with me wherever I go. So if you see me on the side of the road thumbing a ride – as I’m not old enough yet for a driver’s license – I hope you’ll offer me a lift. Then we can take a picture of us and I’ll post it on the selfie wall of my WordPress site!

I just love exploring Rochester. Some people even think I know a whole lot about my home town and I have to admit, I love to tell a good story – complete with photos of course. But, more about my Rochester explorations next time. In the meantime you might want to consider visiting The George Eastman House https://www.eastman.org/ .

What is a Happiness Bar? A place to get a drink? A place to practice karaoke? At WordCamp Rochester 2018, I learned that the Happiness Bar is staffed by local WordPress pros and they are there to lend a helping hand and answer questions. They helped me figure out a plug-in issue I had and even wrote a quick bit of custom CSS to get a button on my site looking a bit more stylish. Speaking of style, what do you think of my clothes? More on that next time! Catch ya’ at the WordCamp Rochester 2019 Happiness Bar!

As a WordPress newbie I was surprised at some of the things I learned at WordCamp last year. I started that morning thinking hashtags might be a type of potato; that Akismet was an insect of some kind; that a dashboard was a type of surfboard – and I’d never surfed, much less been near a lake or an ocean!

I was also surprised to learn that a footer was not a type of running shoe, that the visual editor was not another name for an optometrist. Heck, I thought that tag referred to a kid’s game and that JQuery was the name of one of the speakers!

Luckily I found a lot of friendly help with all of these concerns and more during lunch, in the afternoon, at snack time, from the presenters, other participants, and at the Happiness Bar. I had all kinds of ideas about what a Happiness Bar might be, but more on that next time.

At 23 days old I attended my first WordCamp and I was hooked! There were plenty of other beginners, business owners, and website designers and developers. I appreciated the easy way people shared and answered questions. By the end of a day full of presentations, a hearty lunch, swag and the After Party I developed a picture of the Rochester WordPress community and in a word it was – welcoming.

Later I learned that since 2006, WordCamps have been connecting the WordPress community. And they happen all around the world! I was so excited that last year I told everyone, “This is sooo cool that I can spend a whole day with other people in Rochester who love WordPress!” And, at $20, the price is sooo right!

Hi! I’m Brownie and I’m almost one year old. I was discovered by James Tryon, and inspired by Michelle Frechette Ames, another photography lover and local WordPress motivator, leader and gatherer, to attend my very first WordCamp Rochester last year. I wasn’t even a month old at the time. I’ve since been adopted as WordCamp Rochester’s mascot and cheerleader – I can’t wait to reconnect with everyone and make some new friends too!

I’m a member of the Wapuu. My first family member was born at an After Party some years back. One thing led to another and the first Wapuu was born – you can read all about my family origins at https://wapu.us/wapuu-history-origin/.

Look for lots more blog posts from me!